Smith had seven points for Almeria. Price led his team with 15 points and Hein added four. The two teams will play again this Thursday (Nov. 25) to determine which team will go to the next round.

Also in the CEV Cup, Switzerland’s Volley Amriswil, which includes U.S. players Max Lipsitz (middle blocker; Williamsville, N.Y.) and Daniel Mathews (setter; Shorewood, Wis.), will advance to the next round after defeating Famagusta of Cyprus on Tuesday.

Amriswil beat Famagusta, 3-2 (26-28, 26-24, 25-22, 23-25, 15-12), then had to win a “golden set” to break the tie between the two teams (Amriswil lost to Famagusta, 3-2, last week). Amriswil won the extra set 15-8.

Scott Touzinsky (St. Louis, Mo.) and his German team SCC Berlin will also move on to the next round of the CEV Cup after it defeated Romania’s Tomis Constanta on Wednesday (Nov. 24), 25-22, 25-15, 25-16).

In the GM Capital Challenge Cup, Isku Tampere, the Finnish team of U.S. setter Kawika Shoji (Honolulu, Hawaii) defeated Draisma Dynamo Apeldoorn of Netherlands, 3-1 (26-24, 25-16, 23-25, 27-25) on Nov. 18 in Tampere, Finland. The teams will play again on Wednesday (Nov. 24) in Netherlands.

Fakel Novy Urengoi and U.S. setter Kevin Hansen (Newport Beach, Calif.) have advanced to the next round of the Challenge Cup after defeating Serbia’s Partizan Beograd for a second time on Nov. 23. Novy Urengoi won the second match, 3-1 (25-23, 25-17, 19-25, 25-19). Hansen started all four sets at setter, scoring five points on one kill, two blocks and two aces and assisting the team to a 0.39 hitting percentage.

Anderson scored 19 points on 18 kills (0.32 hitting percentage) and one block. He also had 25 receptions, 56 percent of which were positive and 40 percent excellent. Vibo Valentia improved its record to 2-3.

U.S. outside hitter Sean Rooney (Wheaton, Ill.) led all scorers with 22 points, but it was not enough as his Italian team Acqua Paradiso Monza Brianza fell to Bre Banca Lannutti Cuneo, 3-1 (16-25, 26-24, 25-22, 25-23). Rooney scored on 19 kills (0.36 hitting percentage) and three blocks. He also had 33 receptions, 55 percent positive and 27 percent excellent.

U.S. middle blocker Max Holt (Cincinnati, Ohio) and his team Copra Morpho Piacenza defeated Andreoli Latina, 3-2 (23-25, 25-18, 25-22, 25-27, 15-10) on Nov. 21. Holt started all five sets and scored eight points on six kills (0.75 hitting percentage) and two blocks.

Priddy, who had just returned to the team after a visit to the United States, substituted in the second set and started the third scoring four points on four kills (0.43 hitting percentage). Ball started all three sets and scored two points on two kills while setting Kazan to a team hitting percentage of 0.52.

Hansen scored two points on two aces and set Novy Urengoi to a 0.27 hitting percentage.

Jablonsky started all four sets and scored nine points on seven kills (0.40 hitting percentage) and two blocks. Price started all four sets and led Lamia with 21 points on 20 kills (0.40 hitting percentage) and one ace. Hein started the first three sets and added four points on four kills (0.80 hitting percentage).

PAOK, the Hellenic League team of U.S. setter Jonathan Winder (Irvine, Calif.) sits second in the league after another victory on Nov. 20 as it defeated ESOP Epikouros, 3-1 (25-23, 25-21, 19-25, 25-23).

Winder started all four sets and scored three points on one kills, one block and one ace. He also set the team to a 0.50 hitting percentage.

Billings led all scorers with 26 points on 22 kills (0.46 hitting percentage), three blocks and one ace. Owens added 15 points on 13 kills (0.44 hitting percentage), one block and one ace.

POLAND

U.S. middle blocker Ryan Millar (Alpine, Utah) and his Polish Superliga team Asseco Resovia Rzeszów fell to Delecta Bydgoszcz, 3-1 (23-25, 25-22, 25-17, 25-14). Millar played as a substitute (only two foreign players are allowed on the floor at a time and his team has three others) and scored two points on two kills.

GERMANY

On Nov. 20, Touzinsky and his German league team SCC Berlin came back from two sets down to defeat A!B!C Titans Berg.Land, 3-2 (21-25, 28-30, 25-13, 25-23, 15-9). Touzinsky started all five sets and scored 10 points on six kills, two blocks and two aces.

BRAZIL

U.S. middle blocker Russell Holmes has now played two matches for Vivo/Minas in Brazil’s Superliga.

In the first match on Nov. 10, Holmes started three sets and scored six points on four kills and two blocks as Vivo/Minas fell 3-1 (25-23, 25-20, 22-25, 25-23) to Pinheiros Sky.

On Nov. 12, Holmes started all four sets and scored 10 points on six kills, two blocks and two aces as Vivo/Minas fell to Sesi-SP, 3-1 (22-25, 28-26, 25-21, 25-23).

FRANCE

U.S. setter Brian Thornton (San Clemente, Calif.) and his French B league team Chaumont defeated Cambrai, 3-2 (25-19, 25-19, 23-25, 14-25, 15-11) on Nov. 20. Thornton started every set except the third and set the team to a 0.54 kill percentage. He also scored a point.